Transit supporters march on Mass. St.

Transit supporters organize downtown march

From left in the cardboard buses, Bonnie Cherry, Dave Loewenstein and Clarate Heckler, 12, all of Lawrence, show their appreciation for the Lawrence Transit System, or The T, Saturday, Nov. 1, 2008 during a demonstration and march on Mass. St. The march was held to raise awareness about how The T's future depends on an upcoming vote.

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With the election around the corner, Lawrence Public Transit system supporters marched Saturday down Massachusetts Street in a final appeal for voter support.

"There's a growing number of the population that do or are going to very shortly depend on the T as their primary means of getting to shopping, to church, to the hospital and to cultural events," said C.J. Brune, a rally organizer. "It's important not only for people who desperately need it to get to their jobs, but I think it's going to cut across every strata of society in Lawrence."

Two sales tax measures on the ballot this election season will decide the fate of the city's bus system.

If approved, they would provide 10 years worth of funding for the transit system.

At least 50 people participated in Saturday's rally, which started at South Park and moved down Massachusetts Street to the northwest corner of Ninth and Massachusetts streets.

Participants wore paper tiaras decorated with a T.

Some rode in a bus, with "Save the T" painted on the side. Others marched, wielding signs.

Elizabeth Hein, a daily bus rider, lives in the area of 25th and Louisiana streets and uses the bus to get to work on Haskell Avenue. If she doesn't ride the bus, she walks.

"That is a walk, but I'll do it because I can," she said.

"Other people can't. That's not an option for them."

Hein told the story of some of her acquaintances who, like her, rely on the T. Hein has a co-worker, a single mother of two, who rides the bus because she doesn't own a car.

Hein said her neighbor also relies on the paratransit system.

"She's dependent on that to go to doctors visits, the library - anywhere she goes, she has to have that," Hein said. "If that weren't there, I don't know what she'd do."

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Comments

PeteJayhawk (Anonymous) says:March?Wouldn't it have been easier to take the bus?========================================1. The bus didn't go where they needed to go.2. They didn't have time to wait for a bus to show up.

Voting to throw money down a pit without demanding a reasonable management plan is incredibly stupid.......Lawrence, you need a reality check. Especially when the majority of the population is picking up the balance. For the extreme, ignorance of the cost is no excuse to force your wishes on the taxpayers who continue to send a blank check to city hall. Other systems also provide service but LJW won't give a decent article on what those cost us either. That money doesn't stay in Lawrence either, just ask MV Transport.

yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes YES It is incredibly short-sighted not to understand that the T generates income. Almost every person riding the T is on their way to earn money or to spend money. A few are on their way to get an education so they can earn more money someday, and they are supporting KU. Every time the money changes hands, sales tax is generated. Every person whom the T enables to work is paying income taxes, sales taxes, and staying off public assistance. I am deeply disappointed in our current city commissioners have no vision to see this. They hung the T on a tax increase as a deliberate attempt to get rid of it. Lawrence will look back on their tenure and regret it.

"lawrencian (Anonymous) says:What I really want to know is if all of you in the "vote no" faction will shut up when/if the sales tax actually passes? Or will we be subjected to your bitter ranting forevermore?"Only if the pseudo-progressives in Lawrence promise never, ever to protest anything again. So far it seems like the "progressives" have an overwhelming corner on bitterness.Regarding passing or failing on the T: Who knows... but what I do know is that it is a win/win. If the T fails, great. That's what I'd prefer. If it passes, it simply speeds the downward spiral in Lawrence and eventually something will have to give. Lawrence can only be anti-business and anti-working class under the canard of Hecklerian faux-progressivism for so long before people realize they've killed the engine that drove the Lawrence economy.Either way, good luck. Until Lawrence is prepared to stop listening to unelected "advisory" groups like the folks who bring you expensive roundabouts and the "grass roots" organizations who protest literally anything and start listening to the much larger quiet majority, Lawrence will continue to slide downhill.

I am ok with the T sales tax, but I have to wonder if this event really did anything for the cause. It might in the future...be handy to look at a calendar and when your event is during the middle of another event...say a KU-KSU game ...ya might want to reconsider. Regardless, the picture and story are nice, but the visuals of the event for community consumption are horrible. It looks like just a few people taking a walk down mass. Also I understand it was Halloween, but why is everyone on the T costume a skeleton....says death on a bus.

dear hawkperchblahblahblah....i am the "boneheaded mother" that you commented on with regards to the T protest. yes, what a horrible thing; to take my children to a march demonstrating for what i think is right. how dare i try and instill a sense of responsibility and accountability for them to stand up for what they believe in and have any opinions. yes, i could have just taken them for a picnic as you suggest, but who is to say i didn't do that with the remaining hours of my day? would you have been more approving if i was out at 23rd and LA protesting against the tax? with the election only two days away, it's hard to miss that this campaign has been an incessant drumbeat of personal attacks; although it's not surprising. i guess you're just following suit.your comments cause me to disregard anything you have said or will say in the future on any subject.

"coneflower (Anonymous) says: It is incredibly short-sighted not to understand that the T generates income. Almost every person riding the T is on their way to earn money or to spend money."Except, of course, this simply isn't true. Do the math on their own statistics and it becomes quite obvious that the T is a huge net drain on the Lawrence economy.I'm shocked that this story doesn't include a Richard Heckler or Dave Strano quote... but hey, at least his kid is being used front and center to promote his agenda. I wonder if that's part of their "home schooling."

I've ridden the T - I've driven the T. They are (or were) nice buses. I think it's mis-managed in many ways - too many to list. It has been from the beginning. Now they are paying for it or Lawrence is. Having public transportation is a good thing here in Lawrence especially for the handicapped and elderly. BUT...... (a big one) this tax they wish to pass to pay for it - I have a real problem with and my gut feeling tells me it's wrong (and I'm usually right when I feel this way). I hate to but will vote NO. I don't want to see the bus leave Lawrence, I just think there must be a better way of funding this operation and managing it more efficiently while paying the driver's a living wage. Something smells in River City, but I just can't put my hand on it.

"penguin (Anonymous) says: Also I understand it was Halloween, but why is everyone on the T costume a skeleton:.says death on a bus."Well yeah... when one of the main leaders can't even master a comma/space bar combination and largely relies upon flooding forums with his cut-and-pastes, what can you expect? Also, boneheadedmother, your daughter "believes" in public transport? That's quite a stretch... Although I do love the whining about a "drum beat of personal attacks" when it is the T people who tend to argue out of emotion and not logic.

The T will never be managed properly without a city commission committed to its success. This commission is committed to getting rid of it. They do not want to tweak it to make it better. And I'm committed to getting rid of this city commission. Vote NO in April to the ones up for reelection.